Recoveries and Discoveries
Chapter 7: Recoveries and Discoveries
Ramos pumped another round into his shotgun and unloaded with all his might into the alien robot.
Time seemed to both slow down and speed up at the same time. During the barrage of shotgun pellets Ramos noticed the robot had a large glowing crystal where its stomach should have been. He could only guess it was a battery of some kind.
After firing all but his last round at the new attacker, which seemed to do nothing but slow it down, he fired his last shot right at the glowing crystal and shattered it to bits.
The machine fell back with a bright flash and disintegrated into nothing, not even ash. Ramos quickly ran over to his injured commander who was groaning in pain just as Boris rushed in with a roar and searched for the robot, his autocannon held high and ready to fire.
“Enemy run like coward!” Boris shouted as he came into the room.
“Boris, check on Sato!” ordered Ramos as he checked Cotton for other injuries.
“Are they all dead?” Cotton managed to grunt out.
“Yeah don’t worry, commander,” Ramos responded. He saw Chavivi slip in holding his sidearm up and began checking the rest of the ship as he then got on his radio, calling in the Skyranger.
“Medic is alive!” screamed out Boris as Sato gasped and groaned in pain, waking up from the massive injury on his back. The heat from the plasma blast had actually cauterized the wound and prevented him from losing blood but still looked like it had done horrific damage.
The Skyranger flew over the crash site at immense speed, kicking up sand and embers around as, with some difficulty, it landed.
One of the pilots ran out carrying a stretcher in one hand and a P90 hanging around his shoulder by a strap. Cotton forced himself to to his feet with Chavivi’s help and walked back to the Skyranger despite the pain. Sato was carried into the aircraft by Boris, Ramos and one of the co-pilots on a stretcher.
Once inside the plane the crew strapped Sato down with his injury upwards. They then set up an IV drip and gave him a shot of morphine from his own med-kit before using the device’s second feature. Thick foam that resembled shaving cream sprayed out from the nozzle, all over the injury and began to harden until it felt like a cast. It then gently warmed up to Sato’s body.
“Crow’s Nest, this is Big Bird. We have the troopers and are taking off now, request you get the medical bay online.” said the main pilot as he slipped down his helmet’s visor and began lifting the plane off the ground.
“We have two injured and one is in critical condition.” As the plane took off a few helicopters could be seen arriving from area 51 to begin cleanup and recovery of the downed UFO.
---
Central was arguing with most of his staff at the command center about how sloppy this mission was. Two men injured, one in critical condition, and they had been unable to find out why the satellite they had trained over the combat site did not transmit their warnings to the Laser-squad.
“Sir, we just lost contact when they got close to the bogey. And when that robot thing showed up it messed with our sensors even more,” the head of the satellite staff said as he attempted to keep Central’s rage to a minimum.
“I don’t want excuses. Find out what went wrong now!” Central shouted and rubbed his eyes, he had warned the commander about the risks of what he was doing, they were more of an outpost than an actual combat base and they couldn’t risk big engagements.
Suddenly Central’s earpiece activated with the voice of the head doctor in medical.
“M’butu to Central, the medical bay is ready for the patients and I already have a clean surgery room set up for Lieutenant Sato”
Dr. M’butu was South African born doctor who received his medical degrees in his home country, the US and the UK.
“Understood, M’butu. They should be here in ten minutes, do your best to save them.”
“With all respect, Mr. Bradford, I am the best,” Mbutu said as he slipped on a medical mask over his face. An orderly removed his ear piece as he slipped sterile gloves onto his dark charcoal hands.
The skyranger finally touched down and two medical beds were rushed over. Cotton was forced into one while Sato was transferred over to his bed. The doctors rushed then both down the base hallways and past many concerned onlookers, one of which being Dr. Vahlen who was trying not to think on the what ifs. For just minutes after the skyranger’s take off she and Dr.Shen had gotten a workable prototype of their own design for a nano-fiber vest that they believed could take up to two direct energy blasts.
“If only I had come up with it sooner,” Vahlen whispered and forced herself to act, rather than think on what might have been. It was then she felt inspiration strike her as she remembered something she had seen from a science report on devices collected from other downed UFOs.
She unclipped the heels from her professional high heels and began running to the science labs. She had a long night ahead of her.
Down in the alien containment wing, Trixie looked up from her paint by numbers set which she was conquering with ease, to see some of the other scientists looking worried.
“Is something wrong?” Trixie asked the scientists through a small microphone in her cell, these hoomans had provided her with many comforts, including the delicious delight they called an “Oreo cookie”.
One of the scientists looked at Trixie then back to his colleague.
“Perhaps I can help, I do know magic,” she said and made her horn glow. “The great and powerful Trixie is adept in many fields.” A small panel in front of her cell glowed yellow, signifying she was half lying.
“Just go back to painting, Miss Trixie. It's nothing for you to worry about,” the scientist said and waved his friend to walk with him to a small office in the room that could have its windows tinted darker. Once inside the scientists flipped a switch to have their conversation in private.
Trixie stomped her left hoof and turned her nose up. “Well, I have never been so insulted and ignored!” The lie detector screen turned red.
----
Cotton and Sato were both put into surgery and the doctors were able to stabilize both men but due to the extreme damage of Cotton’s injuries, he would no longer be combat ready and would most likely be replaced since he had lost feeling and usage of most of his fingers.
Or so they believed, but Dr. Vahlen was burning the midnight oil to contact area 51 and deal with the beaurocracy. Her goal was to get them to hand over one of the strange jars of fluid they had recovered from other UFOs delivered to the Crow’s Nest. If her theory was correct, the rejuvenation tube could be used to heal her friend’s injuries.
During all this commotion everyone was busy and the situation room was left unattended as Central re-tasked the three staff members there into working to find out what had happened with their satellite. There was no one to respond when a lead popped up on “equine like aliens.”
As Cotton lay resting in the medical wing Dr.Vahlen called up Central who was in his office, preparing to let X-com North American command know the situation on their base commander.
“Central officer, is this you?” Vahlen said through her headset as she began punching out multiple chemical bonds into her data pad.
“Yes this is Central. How may I help you, doctor?”
“Do not tell the high command what has happened to Cotton,” Vahlen said in a frustrated tone after having finally gotten the requisition order for two of the protein vats.
“Doctor, I don’t make policy. Our base commander got injured and I have to report it.”
“No you do not, I can heal him,” Vahlen said as her pad began to give her the results she wanted to see.
“Explain, I’m listening, Doctor,” Central said, putting his hands in his lap to listen to the proposal.
“After the main attack by the aliens around the world we recovered many artifacts, including several sets of large tanks filled with fluids. My theory is that perhaps I and Doctor Shen can alter them to speed up cell division and heal the injuries sustained by our comrades.”
Central bit his lip in deep through, considering the proposal. “You have two weeks to get it working right, if there isn’t progress by then, I will be reporting the injuries.”
“Thank you Central, but if I am right this could help curve our personnel loss substantially,” Vahlen said as she called up information from the autopsies of Thin men.
The Thin men autopsies had revealed the infiltrator type aliens had many similarities to earth lizards, including their uncanny ability to heal from loss of limbs.
The next week was a busy one as the good Doctor Vahlen began working alongside Dr. Shen to turn two of the alien protein and stasis vats into medical tubes. If their theories were correct then soldiers could recover from plasma burns in days when before they would take months or years just be discharged.
What helped them the most was aid from an unexpected source, an old abandoned project by the US navy to make water that could be breathed into a human’s lungs and allowed men to breathe underwater . With these old plans, Dr. Vahlen’s genius, and an improved medkit design by Dr. Shen, the tubes were completed.
“Now we just need to test them,” said Doctor Shen as he wiped his aging forehead and looked at the completed product down in the engineering bay. The tubes looked like two large vats of fluid with an oxygen mask hanging out of the top . On the outside of the tube near the circular metal was a computer screen with a keyboard for alterations to be made to aid the patient’s recovery.
“I call them the vita tank,” said Vahlen with extremely tired eyes. Central then walked over and nodded.
“If this works we may have just gained a massive tactical advantage in the war.” So far in combat all around the world many soldiers were severely injured, even with the many types of secondary armor being invented by X-com scientists to be worn under the standard issue Hercules armor.
“Now if we can just get this to the medical bay and heal Cotton and Sato, then I can claim my Nobel prize in my dreams,” said Vahlen.
“The great Trixie can aid her friends in that matter,” shouted Trixie in a loud voice that woke many tired workers as she trotted into the room.
“How did you get out!” shouted Central as his hand instinctively hovered over his sidearm hidden under his uniform.
“Why, I teleported out of course,” she said proudly as in a bright flash Trixie teleported away to suddenly be standing on top of one of the Vita-tanks.
“I think they look odd,” said Trixie as she looked down at the tanks and suddenly disappeared with them.
All the personnel in the room shouted and began talking in shock as Mbutu called Central through his earpiece.
“Officer Bradford, your horse alien just appeared in my med-bay with two large tanks of fluid. Should I be worried?” Mbutu said, sounding confused.
“She actually…never mind. No, don’t be worried but tell her to stay where she is,” central said and waved the two other base leaders to him as he walked to the elevator.
“It seems our little pony friend has some interesting abilities,” Central said as he entered a small elevator to head up to the 2nd floor.
“Yes, it seems so. If we could contact her people I’m sure they would be an invaluable help,” Shen said and contemplated in his mind.
“Or a threat,” Central said. “You saw what she did. If what she did is normal, I'd hate to see what qualifies as extraordinary among her people.”
“I think it’s magical,” said the very tired Dr.Vahlen who was just going along to see if her tanks worked before she went to bed.
When the elevator arrived at the right floor the base leaders walked together to the med-bay where Sato had already been placed into one of the tanks. He floated in the center of it, curved slightly in the fetal position as the oxygen mask over his face also provided him with sleeping medication to rest.
The once terrible burn on his back was already looking better as Dr.Mbutu walked over.
“I cannot believe it, the tanks are healing him. Just moments ago I was getting ready to change his bandages, but now if this continues I believe he may only have a scar. He is healing in minutes what takes hours.”
Dr. Vahlen nodded and then shambled back to the elevator to head to her room.
---------
Med bay.
Cotton was being helped by Trixie up a small ladder to the opening in the top of the tank. Cotton found it an odd sensation as Trixie wrapped him in a shimmering outline of energy that lifted him over the ladder and to the opening where the oxygen mask was also levitated to him and tied around his face.
The world seemed to go quiet and slow down as he was lowered into the tank and was met with a gentle hum of energy as he floated with his scared and burnt hands began to itch. Soon cotton was asleep and the small screen for his tank stated “Recovery rate, 3 days.” For what would have been a permanent injury possibly requiring amputation.
Dr. Shen leaned over to Central. “I think you should go tell the high command we have an invention worthy of sharing with the other bases.”
Central nodded. “Soon, but for now I need to talk to Trix-“ his sentence went unfinished as the UFO alarm rang.
Vahlen let loose a string of German curses as she was awoken from her sleep and proceeded to open a box near her bed and take out a few sleeping pills, at her level of exhaustion the sun could be exploding and she would not care.
“This is Central. What’s going on?” Central said into his microphone and rushed out of the med-bay. Since Cotton wasn’t available he was acting commander of the base.
“Sir, we have a UFO contact in Texas. A ship just flew by so fast we couldn’t even scramble the interceptors before it fired on the city of Austin. Reports say..oh..Sir a message from the council.”
“Let me hear it,” Central said as a familiar deep voice spoke to him.
“Hello Officer Bradford. We have a situation in Texas that demands immediate action. An X-com representative to the UN has come under attack just as he was getting ready to cross into Mexico for a meeting tomorrow with the Mexican president. We need you to send a rapid recovery squad to rescue him immediately.”
“Understood sir. I will have them there within the hour,” Central said as he made it to the control room and activated his own computer console, calling up the second combat team.
“And Bradford, do not make the same mistake as Cotton,” the voice said before hanging up.
Central found himself wondering how much they knew, but shook it off since there were more important things to worry about at the moment. Ramos was in charge and he and the second team were already piling into the skyranger. The second team had been prepared after first had lost two of its members.
This time due to them being deployed to a residential area Chavivi was staying back at the base. The second team was called “Talon squad” and consisted for the moment of Ramos and Boris along with two support riflemen.
One was named Lewis and he was their medic, he hailed from California and had been a pacifist before the aliens attacked. The other rifleman was a veteran of the Afghanistan conflict, a man named Jack. He was a hell of a rifleman, having killed twenty Sectoids during the invasion and had earned the nick name Reaper with his precise shots.
“Alright gentlemen, we have a VIP rescue mission. More than likely we will be under fire the entire time so stay low, keep your trigger fingers itchy, and check your corners,” Central said over the soldier’s comms as the skyranger neared the combat zone.
“What about civilians, sir?” Ramos asked.
“They have all either been evacuated out of the area, are in hiding or dead. But still watch your fire out there,” Central said as he watched the satellite image of the VTOL approaching the AO before it zoomed in more for him to help make tactical suggestions.
-Texas combat zone.
Smoke rose over the area in front of the Alamo as green plasma blasts lit up the cars in front of the ambassador’s limousine as the last surviving member of the ambassador’s security team did his best to fight back the aliens, the bodies of his comrades littered the area around their vehicle as they fell holding off the alien’s attacks when they tried to go in around their flanks.
The convoy had been ambushed in the middle of a traffic jam when the alien gas shells slammed down around them. One hit directly in front of the ambassador’s limousine, killing all inside the decoy limousine. Luckily though the car seemed to contain the gas charge as it went off and ensnared the corpses of the bodyguards inside the limousine.
“This is hopeless!” shouted the ambassador to his last body guard. “Let’s just surrender already!”
The body guard had been using a UZI and an MP5K but now he didn’t have any more magazines for the UZI dropped it to the ground before slapping in the last MP5K magazine he had into the weapon.
“Sir. I believe you may be right.” As much as the guard hated to admit it, he knew when it was time to call it quits. But without the ambassador knowing, the guard had been instructed to terminate the VIP if there was a chance he could fall into enemy hands and reveal vital information.
Just then as the Guard was preparing to turn his weapon on the Ambassador, the aliens began screeching and speaking in their language which resembled animal like grunts and rhythmic clicks. Their attention turned elsewhere, the fire being put against the two surviving humans halted.
“Sir, we have to move now!” the body guard said as he grabbed the ambassador by his collar and pulled him away from the charred and melted wrecks of their convoy and other civilian vehicles.
-----
On the other side of the Alamo three lost ponies had come under fire and were running as fast as they could, using cars for cover and running serpentine.
“Serpentine, serpentine!” repeated Sneaky Breeze to himself while he flew around wildly to avoid being shot.
“Dammit Hooves!” shouted Rock Fist as he bucked one right jab into the face of a Sectoid and watched it collapse dead to the ground from a broken neck.
“This is the second time you led us to these creatures!” Rock huffed as he jumped behind a car for cover.
Sneaky breeze dodged and moved swiftly around in the air, making the aliens waste precious shots on him as he almost danced in the air and tricked a Thin man into spitting acid at one of his comrades.
“I’m so sorry, I was just so sure this was the right way, and all my instincts told me this was the right way,” Derpy said as she casually threw a muffin at a Sectoid and rushed to safety as the alien tried to rub the food out of its eyes.
“Doesn’t matter, let’s just keep moving!” shouted Sneaky as they followed Derpy’s instincts, which led them in the same direction that the X-com team was heading.
“Good, good, everything is going according to plan,” said Discord as he watched from his spot in the Canterlot gardens.
-----
The body guard panted and huffed as he held his submachine gun close to his body, swinging it around and searching for targets as a ship suddenly flew overhead. X-com had finally arrived.
“Go, go, and go!” shouted Ramos as the backdoor of the Skyranger opened and Talon squad threw out rappelling ropes since there wasn’t enough room for the Skyranger to land and pick up the Ambassador.
Talon squad then rappelled out of the Skyranger, with Boris touching down first and bringing up his machine gun with a sneer that made him resembled an enraged bear.
Jack and Lewis touching down next, with Lewis rushing over to check the ambassador who was hiding behind an abandoned SUV while Ramos touched down last.
“Ramos to Central, we have the VIP and are meeting up with Big Bird three blocks down from current position. We are moving now!” shouted Ramos when he saw Lewis hold up a thumbs up after checking the ambassador.
“Negative, Ramos. Send one man to the skyranger with the ambassador and his body guard then set up a defensive position; three more VIPs require your attention.”
“Three more, sir?”
“Yes, better get some sugar cubes ready.” Central said, using the code term meaning that the other equine aliens were the VIPs.
“Understood, sir.” Ramos then signaled for Jack to go with the Ambassador.
“Okay. Boris, Lewis set up among the cars. Boris, you hide behind the SUV and watch out for the VIPs”
“Dah!” Boris shouted in acknowledgement as he set up his weapon on the hood of the SUV and aimed downrange, already seeing plasma fire being blasted at the three ponies as they tried to escape to safety.
Ramos got on his headset. “Central, can the headsets translate to Equinus yet?” Ramos asked. Otherwise the ponies might think they were with the invaders.
“Yes, we have a nearly completed dialogue program ready for usage. Your helmets will translate what you say.”
As the ponies came closer Boris put suppressive fire on the aliens while Lewis and lobbed a smoke grenade behind the ponies, the thick blue smoke providing cover.
“Hey, ponies!” Ramos shouted and walked out where the three ponies could see him, with his weapon held up.
“I’m a friend of Trixie’s. We can get you to safety.”
Rock Fist frowned and was obviously distrustful while Derpy suddenly appeared next to Ramos.
“Oh my Celestia, you know Trixie!?”
“Uh, yeah. She’s our guest.”
“You see, Mr. Rock? I told you my instincts were right,” Derpy said while Ramos looked on confused as the smoke began to clear.
“Lieutenant! Move the VIPs to safety. The enemy is closing in,” Central shouted as another alien squad was moving up. The rest of the attack force had disappeared somehow.
“Okay look, even if you don’t trust me it’s still better than dealing with the other guys,” Ramos said as he removed the tint from his helmet’s visor and looked into the Sergeant pony’s eyes, hoping he would feel a connection.
Reluctantly, Rock fist nodded. “Fine, let’s move out.”
Ramos nodded and retinted his helmet before signaling to the ponies. “Just keep going straight down, you can get inside our ship, well take you to Trixie.”
The ponies moved as a group towards the skyranger as Ramos, Boris, and Lewis opened fire on the aliens. Soon enough the last of the Thin men and Sectoid squad had been killed as the X-com troopers pulled back to the skyranger.
“Central, we are in the transport and taking off.”
The skyranger closed its door and lifted up off the ground, shaking light poles and signs from the force of it’s engines as it made it began its flight back to the Crow’s Nest.
The ambassador was lying unconscious in a corner, having passed out as all the adrenaline drained from his body.
“We have all four VIPs and are making our way back home. Better let Trixie know we got her friends,” Ramos said as he secured his weapon into a small strap next to his seat.
“Understood, Lieutenant. Clean-up crews are on the way to the scene,” Central said as he messaged the alien containment wing to send Trixie to the hanger bay.
As Ramos sat down in his chair, one of the ponies tapped his leg. It was the older looking Gray pony with scars on his flank.
“Are you the commanding officer?”
“For the moment. I’m Lieutenant Ramos.”
Rock fist saluted in respect. “Sir, I am Sergeant Rock Fist of the Equestrian Royal Guard, and I respectfully request to know the situation on this world.”
Ramos exhaled, unsure of that to say. “Wow, where do I begin?”
-----
-Equestria, Canterlot, Vortex research site.
The royal canterlot science and magic committee was having their top unicorn teleportation specialists scanning the area where the dark portal had opened up and swallowed several ponies. The area around the site had been quarantined since the incident and all the best and brightest were there to figure out what happened and why. Twilight sparkle, as Celestia’s student, was given authorization to look over the results of the testing.
“No, this isn’t possible. Magic doesn’t work this way,” the purple unicorn said as she looked at several reports by the researchers. They all had different results, despite some of them doing the same tests and with the same equipment.
“What could have caused this?” Twilight said to herself as she paced around the small tent she was in, tables filled with devices and beakers were moved in a circle to accommodate this habit of hers.
She paused in front of a set of dossiers with pictures on the front that had details about the four ponies that had gone missing.
Twilight couldn’t shake the thought of what it must have been like for those four ponies to get sucked into the vortex. While she didn’t like Trixie she still had a friendly relation with Ditzy doo , or Derpy as most in Ponyville grew accustomed to calling her.
Twilight had a good professional scientific curiosity about her special some-pony Doctor Whooves and feared the thought of Dinky returning to discover her mother gone forever.
Twilight shivered and pushed the thought away as well as the dossier. She then looked at the files on the two royal guards who had been taken as well. She greatly respected to guard and knew it wasn’t easy when they lost their own.
Twilight decided to start from scratch again and see if there was any connection between the four ponies. Besides the obvious that Trixie and Derpy both knew each other, but neither of them had known Rock Fist or Sneaky Breeze.
Twilight opened the file titled “Sgt. 1'st class Rock fist Rock breaker” and began reading what she could.
Rockfist had come from a rock farming family near Trottingham where the rock farm business was most abundant. He had enlisted to the royal guard infantry during the first Diamond dog insurrection when the diamond dogs had banded under one leader to steal the royal jewels of surface dwellers and take what other loot they could, including slaves.
He served in the same unit as Sneaky Breeze’s father, Bricklayer, lieutenant 1'st class.
The sound of someone clearing their throat drew her attention. One of the other researchers had arrived so speak with her.
“Ma’am. If I may, I wish to speak with you,” said a unicorn researcher with a long lab coat that nearly touched the floor.
“Of course, sir. Is there a problem?” she said to the pony as he came in.
“Ma’am, I come to you in good faith as I have worked out what this is.”
Twilight tilted her head at this mysterious pony whose Cutie Mark was of a question mark over a brain.
“I have seen a spell like this before. It is a dimensional spell that was attempted once to test the original version of the time travel spell,” the mystery pony said.
“How do you know all of this, sir?” Twilight asked as she stepped closer.
“That is the question isn’t it?” he said with a smile.
“I am Deep Thought,” the pony scientist said. “And I believe I can recreate the vortex.”
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Aww shit... aliens are coming to town! Also a couple more ponies are going to the war
1805927 Yes
I love that lie detector.
1806162 Yup, and soon more trixie foolishness is to come!
1806384(Fluttershy yay)
Dammit....
Now I gotta get off my lazy ass and write the next chapter of my story before you outdo me!
1806435 As if, im already working on my next chapter and have the one after that fairly planned out.
I hate you....
1806492 Aww you dont mean that, besides yours is more popular than mine. *bro hoof*
Not sure why haha
*bro-hoof back*
Oh no...
cdn1-www.playstationlifestyle.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Arkham-City-Riddler.jpg
1812207
undate?
1895401 Waiting for my editor to finish this new chapter, im alreayd workign on the next one as we speak.
slipped on a medical mask over his face. An orderly removed his ear piece
into the Sargent pony’s eyes
the last of the Thin man
I am Sargent Rock Fist
1. Extra full stop and... uh... And.
2. Sergeant.
3. Men (since there were multiple).
4. Sergeant.
You had me think of a certain Brit movie that included a character called Deep Thought. Man, that character had nothing better to do than rest on its chin.
I can just imagine boris having heavy's voice from TF2.
... well. With Jack Handey on the case, what could possibly go wrong?